The Curse of the Crimson Ankh
Recap: The class gets a private tour of the latest exhibit in Meloka involving Kickankhamun's tomb; meeting Gwen's father in the process. He gives Gwen a ruby found on Kickankhamun's body and Kick seems affected by the gem so they decide to investigate. However, that night, Kickankhamun's sarcophagus was stolen by two mysterious figures!
Chapter four download in progress… Status complete.
Begin transmission-
Hello there, reviews and guests and welcome to chapter 4 of Crimson Ankh! I appreciate all the advice and I would love to keep 'em coming. So read and enjoy, ciao.
-KBSD: TCotCA-
Both teams split of into boys vs. girls scenario; the boys returning to the museum to learn more about the tour guide and archeologist in question while the girls would search the Internet for any information on the necklace. To Kick, there was nothing like the feeling of flying down the busy streets in Egypt, avoiding moving people and jumping ramps; Mouth and Gunther following. He, Gunther and Mouth arrived at the museum to find it swamped with Egyptian police.
"I wonder what's going on." Gunther asked as the boys scanned the scene.
Mouth listened in to an American reporter woman who was on the scene.
"There have been no further comments from the museum pertaining to the theft of the Kickankhamun exhibit's greatest treasure; the mummified body of Kickankhamun. Police say they are baffled by the case as no clues appear to be left by the perpetrators."
"Kickankhamun's body was stolen?" Mouth asked the group, "Who would want to steal a decaying old body?"
Kick's eyes drifted to an alleyway on the side of the museum building, "Let's find out." He whispered determinedly as he led the group down the dark, damp alley.
Following the trash-littered pathway, they discovered the side door to the museum, completely forgotten by the staff. The door was old but solidly built, with no means of easy entrance.
"Now what?" Gunther asked
"I could try to open it," Mouth said examining the lock, "but I'd need a credit card."
Gunther reached in his pocket, pulling out the plastic key card that unlocked him and Kick's hotel room. He offered it to the resourceful dealer "Would this work?"
"It might…" Taking the card, the boy knelt in front of the lock. Sliding the plastic in h maneuvered it for a few seconds before twisting the handle and finding it opening with ease.
"Nice work." Kick complimented as Mouth handed back the card.
"Oh, it was nothin'."
Following the hallway, the boys ducked behind objects every now and then to avoid a guard or staff member in the corridors. They passed a door entitled 'Camera room' and Kick halted the group.
"It might be a good idea to check the cameras." He said, eyeing the doorknob
"Don't you think the police would have done that already?" Mouth said as he walked up to the door, opening it and finding no one inside.
"Me and Gunth will check the exhibit; see if anything popped up on the cameras." Kick and Gunther tip-toed down the hallway, leaving Mouth to do his work alone. The boy entered and hopped up on the chair, looking at all the monitors. They all were blank, no picture. Typing on one clear screen he managed to pull up a staff list and scanned it quickly for the tour guide's name, not surprisingly it wasn't available. Odd... He tried to hack into what footage remained from the previous night but was met with pass-coded firewalls.
Drat, he cursed in his head as he went to leave but stopped when he spotted something behind one of the monitors. He reached his hand behind carefully and removed a strange looking necklace from its hiding place.
Well, what do we have here…?
-KBSD: TCotCA-
Kick and Gunther finally found the Kickankhamun exhibit, deserted for some reason. Probably most of the police had gone, with enough evidence they could salvage.
"I'll watch the halls, Kick, look around." Gunther took his post as the daredevil headed toward the taped off area of broken glass. He peered in the empty sarcophagus, seeing no marks, no prints, nothing. He looked up at the vaulted ceilings, spotting several destroyed security cameras either dangling by frail wires or missing entirely.
Hmmm… I guess the cameras were a waste of time. Turning to walk back he paused and felt the sudden urge to look in the coffin again.
-KBSD: TCotCA-
Mouth examined the golden necklace in his grip. True it could have been a fake but, the experienced man like himself, he had seen fakes before. Something in his gut told him the jewelry was real and was desperately important, but what is it doing in a security office, hidden from plain site. His inspection was cut short when he heard somebody outside the door. Panicking, the scammer stuffed the necklace in his jean pocket and hid under a nearby desk.
The door opened and shut quickly, a rather large security guard snickered as he stood in the room. Reaching in his shirt he removed a dagger, smirking evilly as he chanted, "TELUM DOMINII PERSONA DECRUSTO!" Smoke swirled around the man, changing his figure from over weight to thinner. His attire changed as well, from a uniform to a suit and tie and sunglasses to cover his eyes. Holding up the dagger, he man watched the blade as it began to glow an eerie crimson.
"It has been done, the police are clueless." He sneered; satisfied with the news he was transferring.
Mouth's eyes widened when the weapon responded, "Good, return and we shall prepare the body."
Hiding the dagger in his pant leg, the man's cold eyes moved toward the monitor and felt behind it, looking for something. His actions became more thorough when he discovered the objects disappearance. Mouth took this time to make a run out the door, spotted in the character's peripheral vision.
"HEY, STOP!" he boomed; his voice striking more fear into the kids soul as he quickened his pace, hoping not to be caught by the suspicious figure.
-KBSD: TCotCA-
Just taking a glance inside the ancient sarcophagus, Kick discovered a slip of paper lying in the bottom of the casket. What, but there was nothing in there, I'm sure of it. Picking up the paper, he observed the markings that littered the strip but couldn't make heads or tails of what it said. This is weird; I wonder what they mean...
"KICK, MOUTH'S COMING AND HE'S GOT COMPANY!" Gunther yelled as he sprung to life.
Kick tucked the folded slip into his glove for safe keeping as the duo perched on either side if the doorway.
Mouth busted in panting heavily and was quickly followed by the villainous man that was hot on his tail.
"Give me what's rightfully mine, worm." He spat seriously, eyeing the troublesome dealer.
"Oh, you mean this?" He removed the necklace, smirking as it seemed to enrage the man even more.
"I'll have your head for this!"
"I don't think so." Kick said from behind as he and the Nordic boy ambushed the man knocking him to the ground. Caught, the figure hit the floor hard, falling unconscious to the polished tile.
"Thanks," Mouth retrieved his breath.
"Come on, let's get outta here." Gunther said, proceeding to run for the exit later followed by the daredevil and dealer. The trio ran out of the museum and back to the hotel, not stopping for anything.
-KBSD: TCotCA-
Meloka was often known for preserving its history, but what it's not renowned for was its tabs on technology. The girls decided that the web may give more answers to their problem. A large Internet cafe was located on the ground floor of the hotel and was available to all guests. Selecting a modem, the group settled in to work.
"So where do we begin?" Wackie Jackie asked, pulling up a chair for herself, just as some poor gentlemen was sitting down, landing rather awkwardly on his butt.
"Well, I guess the museum website." Kendall sat erect on the chair her typing fingers lined on home row.
"Hold up, I wanna check my email first." Gwen tilted the keyboard to her direction, ignoring the eye roll she received from the blonde girl. Typing in search engine, a certain news article struck her attention, "The Meloka Museum was robbed?" She read aloud in shock, catching the attention of her two friends.
Clicking for further details, Gwen allowed her eyes to follow the writing digitized into the latest news section. Jackie and Kendall leaned over her shoulders as she spoke aloud.
"'Police are referring it as the crime of the year. Last night, suspects broke into the museums flawless security systems and took the mummified body of the legendary Boy-king Kickankhamun. No leads have developed since the discovery earlier this morning.' That's just creepy."
"Yeah, we go see the exhibit one time and the next it's gone," Jackie said eerily, "vanished in a puff of smoke."
"It can't just vanish, it had to have been moved somewhere." Kendall supposed as Gwen moved to another link that concerned Kickankhamun himself.
"What do we know about Kickankhamun?" The blonde took a pen out of her bag and began to take notes.
"Kickankhamun was one of the last pharaohs in Egypt, about 5000 years ago. He took the throne at the age of ten, after his father died. He had a queen about his age named Akila, but no children. His death was sudden and grieved the people deeply; shortly later the Roman Empire succeeded shortly after and led to the fall of Egypt as the largest empire in the world." Jackie listed the facts, counting off her fingers. Gwen mentally checked to keep her from appearing shocked, she had no idea Jackie was so… smart.
"Wait, the Roman Empire grew after his death?" Gwen felt something strike a chord at that unknown fact. If Octavius had been a part of the Roman army, was their meeting designed to lead to the Kickankhamun's death? Were they behind the assassination plot to kill him?
"Yeah and… wasn't there something about a slave girl?" Jackie left the sentence hanging without a true answer.
"Yes, Kamilah, she was a gift to Kickankhamun from the Roman general Octavius Axelaneous." Gwen filled in as she read the screen.
"Who gives their child away to be a slave under the enemy leader?" Jackie asked, kind of disgusted at the thought.
"Well, it shows one's trust, and slaves were a powerful influence on society back then." Kendall answered as her face grew suspicious, "Or maybe there was another reason. Maybe Kamilah was a spy for the Roman Army."
"What?" Gwen asked incredibly, "Why would she do that?"
"She was a roman right? So maybe she traded her freedom for whereabouts on the pharaoh." Kendall scribbled on the paper in front of her, almost excited at the idea.
The scarlet haired girl only shook her head, the idea made sense but for some reason her intuition was telling her something else. "Kamilah would never do that, she had no true motive to kill the boy king."
"Well, it's a theory," The bookworm felt a bit upset that Gwen come out and try to deny her thought, "Everyone can have their opinion."
Gwen turned back to the monitor, a picture catching her eye of a thick book. "Huh, look at this." She began to read, "One of the great lost items of Kickankhamun's tomb is the legendary Book of the Dead. The Book of the Dead is a manuscript that was believed to contain spells and rituals designed to either contact or awaken the underworld. It was thought to be so dangerous it was given to the pharaoh for safe keeping and passed down from generation to generation. However the book had become untraceable around 5000 years ago; some believe it was stolen by the priests to learn about its powers."
"The Book of the Dead, sounds fantastic, a case like this isn't complete without some lost artifact." The brunette mused as her straightened her glasses.
"Could the book have something to do with Kickankhamun's death?" Kendall wondered.
"I don't know, I guess it's possible." Gwen said, beginning to turn away from the computer, when Jackie stopped her.
"Wait, look at this-" she read, "A suspect of the book's theft was the priestess Septaria, a prodigy of the famous Hafsah, the sun priestess. It was believed that she was a conjurer of dark spells, and had a personal vendetta against the kingdom. One night she was spotted conspiring with a Roman solider after the king's death in the temple of Isis. The myth says that the goddess began so enraged that she turned the two into spirits, forced to float within her temple for eternity for their devious actions." Jackie stopped and looked at her friends, "Maybe these people had killed the pharaoh!"
"A priestess and a roman solider, sound like an unlikely combination." The blonde continued her notes as Gwen scrolled down.
"There's more…" Gwen's eyes locked onto the small drawing of Kickankhamun, her attention leaning toward an ankh necklace embedded with a crimson gem draped around his neck. "The Pharaoh was said to have possessed a special ankh that gifted his royal status. This necklace was known commonly as the Ankh of power with the Ruby of passions. This was proclaimed as a gift from the gods and was desired by everyone who has ever seen it. Some believe that the necklace is connected to the Book of the Dead; that if the wearer were to read a passage of the book the necklace would change that passage into reality."
"Wow, it must have been beautiful to catch everyone's attention." Kendall remarked, "The legend bothers me though…" Gwen mentally concurred, Yeah, wait, could the gift from my dad be the-
The girls lost their focus as another group burst in the frosted glass doors, making a b-line for their feminine counterparts.
"Guys, what happened, where have you been?" Kendall asked as the boys screeched to a halt; a taking a moment to catch their fleeting breaths.
"We stopped in the- museum- only to find it crawling with police. So we- snuck in and got- chased by this guy- he has to be partly behind the robbery." Mouth spilled as he panted.
"What did he look like?" Gwen also asked as Kick finally brought his heart rate back to normal.
"One word-Tyrant." He said as the others came back from oxygen starvation.
"Mr. Tyrant? I knew we couldn't trust that guy, he just reeks evil!" The emerald eyed girl slammed her fist on the chair's armrests.
"Tyrant?" Jackie echoed, "Whatta name."
"He's my dad's latest excavation partner, he's a total freak." Gwen summed up quickly. Turning back to the male spies, she folded her hands like a villain and leaned back in the chair, "Anything else to report, my eyes?"
"Two things," Kick shook his head to her playful actions, counting on his yellow gloved digits, "One, Mouth was telling us he found an artifact apparently stolen from Kickankhamun's exhibit."
"Let's see it," Gwen urged the blonde boy as he carefully removed the bundle from his jean pocket. The girls gasped when the golden ankh dangled in front of their faces. Ironically, it was similar- no- the exact same to the Ankh of Power.
"That's the Ankh of Power!" Jackie emphasized by pointing at the object.
"The- what?" Gunther questioned, kinda missing the whole conversation.
"The second thing was I found this at the crime scene," Kick removed the paper from his glove and handed it to Kendall who extended her hand.
After inspecting the slip, Kendall explained her results, "Okay odd coincidence #1: This is written on Papyrus with some kind of ancient ink;"
"Papyrus? You mean like stationary?" Gunther piped in as the blonde denied with a shake of her head.
"No, this is actual ancient papyrus; the materials can't be modern. Odd coincidence #2: This language is ancient Egyptian."
"No joke, legit hieroglyphics?" Gwen blinked as her forest green eyes widened in the excitement of the moment.
"Yes, but, unfortunately I can't translate it." Kendall passed the script to Gunther.
Kick was beside himself; this quest left more questions than answers. Ugh, is all this just a waste of time? Awkwardly, a voice responded, similar to his-
No.
"We can't let anyone know we have this; people may think we robbed the museum!" Jackie muttered nervously.
"She's right," Kick rasped, perking the brunette up a bit, "One of us should keep it."
"Well I can't, my roommate is about as nosy as I am." Mouth scoffed.
"I'll take it; Gunth and I share a room." Kick extended his hand and took the necklace.
"Well, I'm up for some lunch, anybody want to join me?" The Nordic boy offered as his stomach released a loud growl.
"I could do that." Jackie agreed as Mouth and Kendall nodded. Kick didn't have any real pockets to hide the Ankh so he draped it over his helmet, tucking it under his jumpsuit, nearly shivering as the cold jewelry touched his bare skin. They all set off for the cafe when Kick felt his arm be held back. Turning his head, he came face to face with Gwen. She whispered into his ear, her hot breath teasing the surface.
"Meet me in my room tomorrow night, when Kendall and Jackie leave for the excavation site. There's something I want to talk about." Kick nodded but was mentally on the verge of a nervous breakdown. Gwen wants to see me, alone, with no one else around. Now don't be so ignorant, she could want to talk about anything... His eyes locked to the ground, his face flushing, I hope it involves us...
-KBSD: TCotCA-
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU LOST IT?" The woman screamed in rage as she tightened her delicate hands into fists. "Just how exactly are we supposed to perform the ceremony, without the Ankh of Power? Also the Ruby of Passion was not in the stock of artifacts preserved in the museum, we have nothing- NOTHING!"
The male calmly folded his arms in a defensive posture, "The boy managed to obtain the necklace, but that was expected." He walked over to the pool and touched the surface of the murky water. The woman followed and grew surprised to see Kick holding the necklace of their power.
"I-I'm impressed, but how does this help us find the Ruby of Passions?"
"The Ankh of Power will be drawn to the Ruby by all means, with one small strike we can eliminate our enemies and claim what is rightfully ours." He smirked as it was rare that he ever out-smart the priestess.
"Yes, this also solves the other dilemma." The woman turned around and moved toward the large alter where the bandaged body of Kickankhamun lay.
"What other dilemma?" He asked, his voice dropping an octave at the unknown information.
"I was processing the pharaoh's internal organs when I came to the conclusion that the kings' voice box is missing."
The man shook his head in disbelief, "How do we expect him to read WITHOUT a voice?"
"I have thought of that, and I assure you I have a plan." The woman cackled as she gazed at the immobile body of the Pharaoh she once served. "We must meet this 'Kick Buttowski' and when we do," Her eyes narrowed against the burning torchlight, "nothing will stand in our way."
-KBSD: TCotCA-
Holy crap, long chapter… whew. So that is it, I hope you all thought this was worth the wait. Many things happened and I am eager to start the next part.
So tell me what you thought! Like it? Hate it? Cake or Pie? Cat or dog? Anyway Read and Review, gracias.
Until next time, bye!
Phoenix
-Transmission ended-